The Sacramento State softball team finished the Capital City Kickoff 1-3 following a win against Santa Clara, two loses to UC Santa Barbara and a loss to Cal at Shea Stadium.

The Hornets, which competed from Friday through Sunday, started the tournament with a 6-2 victory over the Santa Clara Broncos.

Sac State experienced a boost from the offensive end from junior third baseman Krystal Aubert, who went 2-for-3 with three RBIs, including a home run in her first at-bat as a Hornet. Sophomore first baseman Mo Spieth added two RBIs while going 1-for-2.

Senior pitcher Celina Matthias was able to hold the Broncos off by giving up only two runs in her complete-game performance. Matthias also added four strikeouts while allowing five hits.

The second game of the tournament resulted in an 8-7 extra innings loss to the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos on Saturday.

The Hornets were able to get an early lead with three runs in the third inning and held a 6-2 lead going into the final inning. However, the Gauchos rallied back to tie the game and won in the ninth inning.

Junior pitcher Savannah Corr was taken out despite only allowing one run on seven hits with one strikeout in five innings of work. Sac State coach Lori Perez said she doesn’t regret the decision.

“I thought Savannah was doing a really good job,” Perez said. “We had a long inning the inning before, and I thought she was a little cold. I thought it was a good time to make a change.”

During the game, Aubert was taken out early with an injury to her arm. It’s unclear when she’ll return, but she could be seen with her arm in a sling for the rest of the tournament.

The third game of the tournament brought another loss (8-4) against the Gauchos for the Hornets.

Sac State gave up a five-run first inning and the Hornets could never come back from the deficit despite a two-RBI performance from junior designated player Sydnee Strong and a 2-for-3 showing with an RBI from sophomore Suzy Brookshire.

The last game of the tournament involved Sac State falling to Cal 2-1 in extra innings on Sunday following seven innings of shutout softball from both sides.

FINAL: Hornets lose in dramatic fashion. 2-1 on a double play at the end, shown here. Hornets fall to 1-3 and Bears improve to 4-0. pic.twitter.com/dGQFlUiFVV

— Alex Daniels (@DanielsAlex_) February 12, 2018

The two teams were originally supposed to play two games in the tournament, but only one of the games was played due to the first game being cancelled because of impending darkness due to the Hornets’ three hour and 37 minute game against the Gauchos.

Despite receiving the loss, Corr pitched seven innings and gave up one earned run with two strikeouts against the Golden Bears.

“I went through thinking it doesn’t matter who I am facing on the mound,” Corr said. “I can pitch well against any team on the other side.”

Senior second baseman Zamari Hinton led the Hornets in hitting with a .563 batting average in 16 at-bats. Corr posted a 1.00 ERA in 14 innings pitched with five strikeouts to lead the Hornets on the pitching side.

As a team, Sac State hit .289 and posted a 3.16 ERA. However, the Hornets were outscored by opponents 20-18 throughout the four games in the tournament.

Sac State will look to rebound from the Capital City Kickoff with the Mary Nutter Classic from Feb. 17-19 where the Hornets will play Cal Poly, Syracuse, UC Santa Barbara, Army and UC Riverside in Palm Springs, California.